Fall Carrot Cupcake

Today was the first day it has felt like fall; colder weather and a crisp breeze called for a few layers.  So naturally, I decided to bake a cupcake suited to the changing seasons.  Since I had received carrots in my farm share this week, I decided to go with carrot cupcakes.

I used a recipe that called for some cinnamon and nutmeg, but since I didn't have nutmeg I just added a bit extra cinnamon, and it worked perfectly.  These are probably my new favorite fall cupcake, the carrots are wonderfully framed with some walnuts and spices, and the cream cheese icing is just perfect on top.

Happy (almost) Fall!
Margaret

Carrot Cupcakes

Adapted from Gourmet March 1995

Makes 14-16 Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 cup firmly backed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 3/4 cup carrots (about 4), peeled and shredded

1/3 cup walnuts, chopped fine, toasted lightly, and cooled

Pretheat oven to 350°.

In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.  Set aside.  In another bowl mix oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.  Stir in walnuts and carrots.  Add flour mixture and stir until just combined.  Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full with batter, and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cream Cheese Icing

6 tablespoons butter, softened

8 oz cream cheese

1 1/2 - 2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Cream butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.  Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at  a time until desired sweetness.  Add vanilla and mix well.

Inaugural Cupcakes

This past Saturday was a very momentous day, a day I have been looking forward to since last April.  Last Saturday was the day that I moved into the Cupcake Suite.  I am now living in my adorable suite with my wonderful friends, and I have loved every minute of it.

Our kitchen is small, but overall it is actually quite useable, even for multiple people.  On Monday afternoon we got right to work baking our first batch of inaugural cupcakes for the suite.  Everyone pitched in a little bit, and we made a big batch.  I decided to go with one of my staple cupcake recipes- the black magic cupcake with brown sugar cream cheese frosting.  Enjoy, and welcome to the cupcake suite!

Margaret

Black Magic Chocolate Cupcakes

(Makes 18-24 cupcakes)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1 3/4 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

1/2 cup canola oil

1 cup strong coffee

1 cup buttermilk

Stir together flour, sugars, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt with a whisk.

Stir in the vanilla, eggs, oil, coffee, and buttermilk until blended and then beat with an electric mixer on medium for 2 minutes. Batter will be soupy. Pour into cupcake cups.

Bake 20-24 minutes at 350 degrees- or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Creamy Brown Sugar Frosting

Bon Appétit October 1999

Makes about 3 1/2 cups

12 oz cream cheese

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

pinch of salt

2 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter in a large bowl until fluffy. Add brown sugar; beat until well blended. Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, beating well between each addition. Beat in vanilla. Chill until firm enough to spread, about 30 minutes.

Blue Velvet

I have not made cupcakes in ages.  (Well perhaps a few weeks- but that seems like ages for me.)  It rained this afternoon and finally cooled down below the 100 degree weather we have been having all weekend, so I jumped on this opportunity to light the oven and do a bit of baking. 

It seems that blueberries are my most baked-with fruit- and for good reason.  Blueberries, in my opinion, taste much more exciting and flavorful when cooked as opposed to fruit like strawberries, which looses it's flavor and texture.  I was going to make blueberry muffins, but since we have not had cupcakes in the house for a bit I settled on Blue Velvet Cupcakes from Chocolate Covered Katie.

I followed her recipe for the cupcakes exactly, although I mashed my blueberries rather than pureeing them (which I think would've been the better option).  For the frosting I used my basic cream cheese frosting recipe.

Enjoy!

Margaret

Cream Cheese Frosting

4 tablespoons butter, softened

8 oz cream cheese

1 cup powdered sugar

pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat cream cheese and butter for 2-3 minutes on high in electric mixer.  Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, beating well in between each addition.  Add salt and vanilla and beat well.  Refrigerate before using.

Fresh Squeezed Cheesecakes

Remember that mini mountain of limes from yesterday?  Well today I attempted to use some more of it up.  Well that was not entirely successful, as the mountain is still there.  But what was successful was the fact that I ended up making the Mini Lime Cheesecakes that I have been dying to try.  So overall today was rather successful.

The idea for these came from Martha Stewart's Mini Oreo Cheesecake recipe, which is a favorite in my house.  They use an oreo for the bottom of the cheesecake as well as crumbled up inside the cake.  It is by far my favorite recipe from her cupcake book!  So about a week ago my sister and I had the idea of making it with golden oreos instead, and adding fruit to the cheesecake.  We decided lime sounded good, and with all of the limes I had in the house (and a trip to the grocery store for the oreos this morning) it seemed like the perfect day for Mini Golden Oreo Lime Cheesecakes to be born.

Enjoy!
Margaret

Mini Golden Oreo Lime Cheesecakes

(Makes 15)

21 oreos (15 left whole, 6 coarsely chopped)

1 lb cream cheese

2/3 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

2 limes, zested and juiced

Beat cream cheese in electric mixer on high for several minutes until cream cheese is smooth.  Gradually add sugar, beating until completely combined.  Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.  Add sour cream, beat until combined.  Add lime zest and juice slowly to batter.  Stir in chopped oreos.  (I actually forgot to add mine in until after they were already in the cups, but you should really add them in here!)

Divide batter evenly among cups and bake at 275° for 22 minutes, or until tops of cheesecakes are set.  Remove from oven and place on wire racks to cool completely.  Once the cheesecakes are room temperature move them, still in tins, to fridge to set for at least 4 hours.

Strawberry Success

I love cupackes, I love fruit, and therefore I love cupcakes made with fruit.  However, until recently, I have NOT gotten along well with frosting made with fruit.  I love how it tastes, but making it has been quite a challenge.  Because of the high water content in fruit, especially strawberries, mixing it into a buttercream or meringue becomes difficult.  The water doesn't mix with the butter and it separates into a gooey mess.  I have resorted to just frosting my cupcakes with a plain vanilla buttercream to avoid the disaster.  However, my mom recently suggested I try freeze dried fruit.  It worked.  I had these in the house, so I just took a pack of them and put them in the cuisinart.  The result was a very fine powder that blended perfectly into the buttercream cream cheese frosting.  You could also add in some strawberry extract, but I didn't have any on hand.  The result not only looked appealing, but tasted really excellent- fruit frosting has been conquered.

 Strawberry Frosting

(enough for 12 cupcakes or so)

4 tablespoons butter, softened (1/2 stick)

8 tablespoons cream cheese (1/2 8 oz pack)

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups confectioners sugar

6-8 freeze dried strawberries

Cream butter and cream cheese in electric mixer on high until fluffy (at least 2-3 minutes).  Add sugar a half cup at a time until fully combined.  Add in vanilla and mix thoroughly.

Place strawberries in a cuisinart and blend until they become a fine powder.  Add two tablespoons of the powder to the mixing bowl and beat on high until fully combined.  If desired, add more strawberry powder or strawberry extract to taste.

Enjoy your easy and delicious strawberry frosting! (It goes great on these cupcakes.)

Margaret